


the one where Jisung is of the rain

by Iris_Duncan_72



Category: Stray Kids (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Non-Famous, Fluff, Kisses, M/M, Magical Realism, i guess?
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-17
Updated: 2018-12-17
Packaged: 2019-09-20 21:17:59
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,744
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17030199
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Iris_Duncan_72/pseuds/Iris_Duncan_72
Summary: Felix has been waiting for the rain.





	the one where Jisung is of the rain

**Author's Note:**

> NEXT ONE'S HERE WOOP
> 
> Lowkey for Izzy, whom I must also thank immensely for loaning me her editing prowess
> 
> Enjoy, darlings~~

It’s been hot and dry, so dry, for weeks that Felix almost thinks he’s hallucinating when he sees a grey cloud with actual substance drift sluggishly across the searingly bright blue sky.

‘Hey,’ he croaks, because by this point, what is speaking normally, what is hydration, what is moisture?  Felix, limply sprawled on the floor alongside three other boys, certainly doesn’t remember.  Licking his chapped lips, he tries again, forcibly injecting some energy into his voice: ‘Hey, guys, guess what I just saw.’

Off to his left, closer to the pointless fan, comes a grunt before Changbin manages, ‘Death, come to free us all.’

‘The air-con repair person,’ Hyunjin chimes in hopefully from somewhere beyond Felix’s feet.

He huffs in amusement.  ‘No,’ he replies.  ‘Something even more miraculous, something we thought had gone extinct, had forsaken us –’

‘Get on with it,’ Seungmin interrupts, sprawled on the couch over to his right.

Felix blinks, eyes feeling as dry as every other part of him that isn’t vaguely sticky with sweat while he stares out the wide open window at that one blessed blemish in the sky.

‘Rain cloud,’ he says, the words falling heavily into the unforgivingly warm air.

Seungmin breaks the sudden hush, a threatening note entering his voice.  ‘You better not be messing around, Lee.’

‘I’m not!’ Felix responds defensively.  ‘I can see it right now.’

A high-pitched whine comes from Hyunjin’s direction.  It could be him non-verbally expressing his elation at the fact that Mother Nature clearly has _not_ consigned them all to fiery hell for the rest of eternity.  It could also be that the heat has finally become too much and his soul is slowly and painfully being fried from his cooked noodle of a corpse.

‘Fucking finally,’ Changbin groans plaintively.  ‘Thought we were all gonna turn into goddamn mummies.’

Felix’s theory about Hyunjin having died promptly crashes and burns as the prone boy in question complains, ‘Oh yuck, hyung, that’s gross,’ while Seungmin ignores them both and asks, ‘When’s the rain due?’

‘Dunno.  Maybe tonight.  Maybe tomorrow.  Day after, if we’re unlucky.’

‘The second it starts raining, I’m gonna drop everything and lie outside until I feel alive again,’ Hyunjin vows brashly, unsticking himself from the floor to sit up and peer out the window.

Seungmin snorts.  ‘Good luck with that.  You’ll be out there for weeks.’

‘Sounds just about long enough to rehydrate my skin,’ the other boy shoots back.  ‘My facemasks haven’t been cutting it for a month at least.’

‘Ugh, what do you use?’ Changbin demands.  ‘My skin’s been crap for _ages_.’

‘Your skin’s always crap,’ Seungmin, the brat, mutters into the sofa cushions.

Changbin squawks indignantly while Hyunjin lets out a string of obnoxiously high-pitched, infectiously squeaky giggles.  Felix isn’t really paying attention and they’re not expecting him to.  They all know why he’s distracted, his gaze yet riveted to that stray cloud.  After all, clouds mean rain and rain means _Jisung_.

 

 

It doesn’t rain that day, but the evening weather forecasters are smiling as they announce with barely suppressed delight that heavy clouds are expected to gather the following morning, with the downpours beginning in the afternoon.

Having returned home from Changbin’s an hour or so ago, Felix had thought he’d managed to compartmentalise the part of him still staring out a window at the grey splotch in the sky – the same part of him which is actually watching the news for once, butterflies of anticipation taking flight in his stomach.  This, unfortunately, proves not to be the case when, after having taken her first sip of the mug of tea her son had dutifully made her, Felix’s mother pauses, peers closely at him, and asks him if he put in two teaspoons of salt instead of sugar.  The honey-haired boy blinks in surprise – why would he have touched the salt? – but, after a tentative taste of the proffered drink, he winces and hastily apologises.

‘Sorry, Mum, I thought I –  Why the heck did I put salt in _tea_ –  The sugar was right there –’

She smiles, a wry curl in the corner of her mouth, dark eyes twinkling.  Patting him on the head, she takes back the ruined tea and stands, saying, ‘Don’t worry about it, darling.  I’m sure you’ve been a bit preoccupied today, hmm?’ as she heads off to the kitchen to boil the kettle again and pour her disgraced drink down the drain.

He stares after her and for a split-second he’s bemused – how does that explain anything, what does she even mean.  Then it hits him like a bag of bricks and he feels like banging his head against a wall because even his _mum_ has noticed how out of it he is now that it’s official, the rain is coming _tomorrow_.  Though really, how did he expect her not to notice.  Accidentally replacing sugar with salt in tea is a pretty obvious giveaway.

Felix trails slowly after her and leans against the kitchen doorframe, his lower lip protruding in a slight pout.

‘Mum, I mean it, I’m sorry I wasn’t paying attention...’

She walks over to him, her gaze gentle as she cups his face and presses a quick kiss to his forehead before meeting his eyes.  ‘I know, Felix, and I meant it when I said don’t worry.  Thoughts about a certain someone are probably quite distracting right now.’

Felix’s cheeks redden but he manages to nod.

His mother smiles again and says, ‘Just try not to hurt yourself.  No walking out blindly into open traffic, right?’

He whines, pulling away from her, and his blush and pout both increase exponentially.  ‘That was one time, okay, and it was ages ago!’

She simply laughs and shoos him out of the kitchen.

 

 

Felix manages not to do anything else daft for about three hours.

It’s late now, both his parents have gone to bed.  He’s in his and his half-brother’s shared bathroom, finishing washing his face, and thoughts of cloud-covered skies, ceaseless rain, and a laughing boy are filling his mind once more.  Hanging up his flannel, he wonders if he’ll have finished work by the time the downpour begins.  Then squeezing lemon toothpaste onto his toothbrush, he wonders if the thunder will come with the rain or if it’ll start later, when most people are –

‘Felix?  Are you –  Why are you holding your toothbrush the wrong way around?’

The blond boy starts, teeth clacking uncomfortably against plastic – wait, he’s put the handle in his mouth.  The _handle._   What the _hell_.  In the doorway, Chris, his brother, laughs at the look of betrayed surprise on his face.  Not unkindly, though – Chris doesn’t have an unkind bone in his whole damn body.

Chucking the toothbrush in the sink and turning on the tap to rinse it, Felix turns to aim a very flustered glare at the curly-haired boy.  He considers telling him to shut up, but decides against it because, firstly, he’s got a mouthful of bubbles and toothpaste and, secondly, Chris’s eyes are curving and god _damn_ if it isn’t the most endearing eye smile in this world (what Hyunjin doesn’t know won’t hurt him).  So he settles for grumbling incoherently in the back of his throat.

Naturally, this just encourages the older boy.

‘Aw, Felix, you’re so cute,’ Chris coos, coming into the little bathroom and pinching his cheek gently.

Felix jerks sharply away and when his brother pursues him, trying to ruffle his hair, and aims an elbow at his ribs.  Chris yelps and dances back, a smile still dancing in his eyes despite the exaggerated pout he’s now sporting.

‘So mean,’ he whines, retrieving his own brush.

The golden-haired boy just rolls his eyes and jams his toothbrush back in his mouth, right way around this time.  When he’s finished, he tells Chris to make sure he goes to bed before the sun comes up – the elder is notorious for staying up horrendously late working on his musical projects – to which he garbles a reply, something like, ‘Only if you do too!’

Felix ignores this as he heads off to his room.  As he, with no small amount of relief, shrugs out of his T-shirt and changes into soft cotton pyjama shorts, he thinks he’ll be lucky if he gets any sleep at all tonight.  After all – the clouds have come, clouds mean rain, and rain means _Jisung_.

 

 

By the time Felix has staggered out the door for school the next day, bleary-eyed and hair an absolute disaster, the sky is covered in a seamless blanket of light grey cloud.  For a puzzling second, he thinks the feeble four hours of sleep he managed have addled him – the sky’s been relentlessly blue for three months now, is it possible he’s gone colour-blind overnight?

 _Ah.  Clouds.  Rain.  Jisung,_ his brain, currently at dial-up levels of efficiency and speed, reminds him.  That wakes him up quickly enough and before he even gets to Changbin’s house three streets over, he’s tripped over his own feet at least half a dozen times as a result of staring upward instead of forward.

When he reaches Changbin, who’s waiting for him outside of his gate and looking very much like a teenage delinquent with his bucket hat pulled low, he offers a cheerful greeting, receiving only a grunt in return.  The older boy is the archetypal not-a-morning-person.  Generously, Felix allows Changbin to hook two fingers through the strap of his bag so he doesn’t have to expend energy watching where he’s going, but this quickly proves to be a bad idea, what with Felix leading them straight into a lamp post not two minutes later.  They manage not to fall over but it’s a close thing, and Changbin expresses his displeasure with a round of furious cursing when Felix’s heel connects with his knee.  Several scandalised looks are thrown their way and Felix puts his strong dancer’s body to good use by wrestling the aggressive boy into submission so he doesn’t try flipping anyone off, cursing their mother, or any other ill-advised attempt at retribution.  Fortunately, for all his feistiness, Changbin is as strong as a wet sock and about as heavy as one too, so aside from a bruised ego or two, the incident is resolved without casualty.

‘Right, since you can’t be trusted to walk in a straight line without maiming yourself –’ Changbin huffs and grabs Felix’s wrist, dragging the taller boy behind him.

Unprepared for the sudden motion, Felix stumbles again but Changbin’s grip is suddenly iron and he manages not to eat pavement.

‘Wow, you’re as bad as Hyunjin today,’ the dark-haired boy smirks, clearly judging the heck out of him.

Felix flushes.  ‘That’s low,’ he hisses, hurrying to catch up with his friend so he’s not being hauled along like a recalcitrant child.  ‘Jinnie’s like a baby giraffe, I’m just... a bit distracted.’

Changbin snorts, smirk growing.  ‘Cool, so it’s only _sometimes_ that you have the coordination of a drunk.’

The Australian boy growls.  ‘Oh, we’ll see how you hold up when the snow comes down from the mountains, huh?’  His satisfaction is immense when Changbin immediately ducks his head, trying but not entirely succeeding to hide his reddening face behind his hat.

‘Shut up,’ he grumbles.  ‘Unlike some people, I’m not an idiot.  I’ll save any sky-gazing ‘til I’m not walking down the middle of a crowded street.’

Felix laughs brightly, tugging at Changbin’s grip on his wrist till the older boy lets him comfortably tangle their fingers together.  ‘Whatever you say, hyung.  I bet the second Jeonginnie gets here, he’ll be scolding you for getting yourself hurt.’

Changbin’s expression melts into a ridiculously soft little smile.  ‘Nah, you guys will keep me from doing anything too bad.’  He glances up at Felix, amusement glittering in his eyes again.  ‘Just like we’re doing for you.’

The comment makes Felix feel unexpectedly happy, a surprise swell of emotion crushing his lungs and leaving him breathless.  So, instead of trying to wrangle a verbal response, he grins helplessly at the ground, keeping half his attention on where he’s walking.  He squeezes Changbin’s hand, knowing the other boy will understand the gesture to be one of affectionate gratitude.

They walk in peaceful silence, ignoring the looks their clasped hands receive, until they get to school, whereupon they are besieged by the familiar sounds of Hyunjin shrieking with laughter and Seungmin shouting in frustration.  Changbin groans and releases Felix’s hand to tug his hat down again, obscuring half of his face.  Felix just laughs his delighted, booming laugh and picks up his pace, eager to join their friends.

 

 

The rain starts at about six.

The _proper_ rain, that is.  The downpour that won’t stop for days, if not weeks.  Since mid-afternoon, there’s been a smattering of light showers, which has provided sweet relief to the over-cooked people, but which isn’t what Felix has been waiting for.

Now, though, he’s at work, busily preparing iced coffees and teas for waiting customers while Woojin, Seungmin’s older cousin, takes their orders.  It’s a Friday evening and the temperature is at long last cool enough for people go outside for anything other than a very good reason, so the little café has been quite busy since Felix’s shift started.

There’s a noticeable pause, however, when the heavens abruptly open and begin unloading an ocean’s worth of water all at once.  Everyone falters for just a second, all of them taking a moment to look out the windows and confirm with their own eyes that _yes, the rains have at last arrived_.  Then Woojin’s meticulously friendly smile springs up again and, in his cheerful voice, he asks the next person in line what they’d like.  Just like that, everything continues, the play button pressed.

It is only with a momentous amount of self-control that Felix doesn’t screw up the banana milkshake he’s making.  That, and the knowledge that Woojin would put him on dish-washing duty for a week if he did.  With this thought kept firmly in mind, he does his best to breathe evenly around the sudden herd of wild horses stampeding through his stomach and gets to work on the next order.

There’s a lull in the flow of customers shortly after.  Felix takes the reprieve to try and settle his stubbornly excited heartbeat, focusing on restocking the sugar packets on the counter without letting his hands shake.

‘Hey,’ Woojin says casually from behind him.

‘Yes, hyung?’  His voice nearly wobbles in the middle and honestly Felix wants to smack himself for being such an emotional sap.  Instead, he politely turns to face Woojin.

‘You going to manage the next couple of hours okay?’ the older boy – young man, really – asks carefully, gentle dark eyes assessing him.

Felix swallows.  Two hours.  That’s all he’s got until his shift finishes, half an hour after closing time.  There’s no doubt in his mind that Jisung will be here by then.  He can do this, though – he’s only had the job four months and he really doesn’t want Woojin to think he’s not capable of standing a little emotional stress.

‘Yeah, hyung.  I’ll be fine,’ he nods, a small, irrepressible smile curving his lips.  He takes a shaky breath and continues, ‘It’s just – just been a while.  I’m excited.’

Woojin smiles back at him, showing his slightly crooked front teeth.  He reaches out to pat the blond boy firmly on the shoulder.  ‘I know, Felix-ah.  Take five minutes out back when he gets here.’

Felix flushes a little, but he gives a shy, ‘Thanks, Woojin hyung,’ before the arrival of a damp customer draws the elder’s attention away.

Time crawls after that and Felix can’t help but be hyperaware of every second passing.  People come and go.  The rain gets heavier and the street outside the café is spotted with umbrellas, unfurled for the first time in months.  All manner of drinks form under his hands and he delivers them, one by one, to each waiting customer.

And then.

At a quarter to seven.

The door opens again, letting in a gust of cold air and the smell of wet tarmac.

Woojin says, ‘Welcome, how can –’

At his abrupt silence, Felix looks up, heart fluttering in his throat.

A soaking wet boy stands several paces away.  His drenched clothes stick to him, water drips from his hair.  But his skin is a warm, healthy, light brown and his chipmunk cheeks are as puffy as ever and his dark eyes are wide and –

_Jisung._

A huge, crinkly smile splits Jisung’s face as their gazes meet, and Felix feels a corresponding grin bloom across his own face.

Woojin snorts but his tone is pure affection as he tells Felix, ‘Go on then, your five minutes starts now.’

Felix immediately reaches out to Jisung, who forgoes common decency to vault right over the counter, offering a quick, grateful salute to Woojin and getting a thoroughly exasperated eye roll in return.  The drenched boy clasps Felix’s hand firmly, intertwining their fingers, as Felix opens the “Staff Only” door and pulls Jisung along down the short corridor to the back room.  The door has barely swung shut behind them when Felix spins on his heel, a tremulous sort of emotion dancing just under his skin.  For a moment, he just stares at Jisung, making sure he’s real, confirming that _yes, he has at last arrived_.  His gaze roams the other boy’s face with a nigh on feverish intensity, reacquainting himself with those long brown lashes, the delicate arch of his brows, and the curve of his plush mouth.  He’s also aware of Jisung doing the same to him, a faint blush rising to his freckled cheeks in response to the blatant attention.

Abruptly, Felix decides he’s had enough of this one-handed contact business.  He shifts slightly, giving Jisung but a moment’s notice before hauling him into the tightest hug of his life, ignoring how wet the other boy is and tucking his head into the crook of Jisung’s neck.  Jisung makes a tiny noise of surprise at the sudden manhandling but his arms are already rising to wrap themselves around Felix’s waist, the warmth of their bodies chasing away the chill of the rain.

His lips flush against Jisung’s skin, Felix whispers, ‘I missed you, Jisungie.’

Jisung’s grip tightens and he rocks them from side to side, turning his head to press a delicate kiss to the blond boy’s hair.  ‘I missed you too, Felix-ah.’

A deep, happy hum starts up in Felix’s throat and he smiles, brushing feather-light kisses against the other boy’s neck.  Jisung lifts a hand to the back of Felix’s head, entwines his fingers in the bright hair, and gently tugs.  Reluctantly, Felix straightens, but his slight confusion melts away in the face of Jisung’s smile, all soft and warm, squished cheeks and white teeth, before he pulls the blond boy in for a proper kiss.  Jisung’s lips are smooth, cool, and taste like rain.  Felix loves them, his contented hum beginning again.  They’re both smiling now, which makes the kiss a little sloppy, teeth nipping lightly at plush flesh, tongues curling around each other in what starts as play but swiftly transitions to something much deeper, much slower, much _rawer_.  It stays reasonably innocent – Felix has to get back to work shortly _dammit_ – but there’s an intensity to it now.  Hands having risen to tangle in wet hair, Felix paints all of his pent up longing into Jisung, dragging it across the roof of his mouth, imprinting it in his lower lip.  Jisung returns his fervour, sweeping his thumb across Felix’s cheekbone, then again when it makes him shiver, and pouring out three months of lost time into him.

Felix really does have to return to the front of the café, though; it’s not fair to leave Woojin out there by himself and besides, he’s only meant to be here a few minutes.  So, with some difficulty, Felix pulls back, a hair’s breadth separating their slick mouths.  He tips his forehead against Jisung’s and meets the boy’s glittering gaze, both of them breathing heavily.

‘I have to get back to work,’ Felix pouts, lips brushing Jisung’s with every word.  ‘We’re not off the clock ‘til eight.’

Jisung huffs a laugh, his breath ridiculously, impossibly, unfairly sweet.  ‘Barely an hour.’ He tilts his head forward to press a kiss to Felix’s slightly swollen mouth.  ‘We’ll survive.’

Felix makes a disbelieving noise, arms sliding down to loop around the dark-haired boy’s shoulders.  ‘Are you sure about that,’ he says, voice flat.

With a twinkling grin, Jisung replies, ‘Yes.  I believe in us.’

A deep, involuntary groan rips itself out of Felix’s throat and he lets his head drop heavily onto Jisung’s collarbone.  ‘You’re so _cheesy_ ,’ he whines.

He gets a bright laugh in response.  ‘You love it, don’t even try and deny it.’

Releasing a very long sigh to make sure the world knows just how awful it is for him to maybe possibly admit this, Felix slumps yet more onto Jisung, forcing the other boy to brace himself firmly and tighten his grip around Felix so they don’t both go tumbling to the floor.

Then, in a very small voice, Felix murmurs, ‘But I want to stay with you.’

Jisung hums comfortingly.  ‘I know.  I’m hardly thrilled either, but there’s not that long to go.’  He coaxes some strength back into Felix’s limp body, cupping his face when he finally stands properly.  ‘I’ll sit in a corner of the shop until you’re done, okay?  Then it’ll be just us, yeah?’  He presses a butterfly kiss to Felix’s freckled nose.  ‘I won’t be going anywhere without you.’

Felix closes his eyes as Jisung softly strokes his face.  He knows all of this, is well aware of the fact that Woojin is no doubt waiting for him now.  But it’s nice to be able to complain about it, just a bit, and have Jisung reassure him.  After an indulgent moment, he opens his eyes again and smiles for sheer happiness at the sight of his somewhat bedraggled boyfriend before him.  He leans in to kiss him once more, just because he can, and retreats quickly enough to catch the faint flush of pink colouring Jisung’s cheeks, to watch his eyes flutter open and that big smile come out again.

‘Okay.  We can go now,’ Felix says.

So, hands once again linked, they leave the room.  Exemplifying one of the perks of being a rain person, Jisung already nearly dry.  His clothes are still rather damp but they do not drip now.  Reaching the front of the café, it takes the boys entirely too long to let go of each other, Woojin clearing his throat meaningfully from the coffee machine.  They both pout, but Jisung blows Felix a kiss and heads off to find a window seat – there aren’t many people here still – and Felix forces himself to turn away.

Woojin, of course, is waiting for him with one brow raised, looking lightly amused.  Felix flushes and starts preparing a lemongrass tea for Jisung.  Despite his mild embarrassment, he can’t stop smiling, so he doesn’t even try.  When the tea is ready and he’s carefully lifting it to carry it out, Woojin pats him lightly on the back, twice, and Felix’s smile blossoms into a toothy beam entirely of its own accord.

Jisung is slumped across his tiny table, clothes leaving wet smudges on everything, hand squishing his cheek mightily where it’s propping up his head.  His lovely dark eyes watch Felix’s every movement, which renews the blond boy’s blush, only this time it’s with shy pleasure.  He sets the steaming mug down in front of Jisung, who hastily sits up so there’s room.

‘Don’t burn your tongue,’ he warns softly.

Jisung grins brightly at him.  ‘Will you kiss it better if I do?’

Felix sighs with fond exasperation.  ‘Yes, Jisungie, but I’d rather kiss you when you’re not hurt.’

The other boy makes a happy noise, eyes sparkling.  He brushes his fingers over Felix’s hand, who reciprocates by gently running his knuckles down Jisung’s soft cheek.

‘A _hem_.’

They both startle slightly at the pointedly loud throat clearing from the counter.  Felix grimaces but Jisung laughs, so it’s with an instinctive smile that he goes back to Woojin.

When the café closes, Jisung brings his empty mug up to the counter and asks if he can help out with tidying up at all.  Felix is in the back, dealing with last of the dishes, but Woojin hands him a cloth and bottle of floral-scented spray, instructing him to wipe down the tables.  Jisung grins when someone switches the music coming through the café’s little speakers, turning up the volume and playing BLACKPINK’s newest song.  Having been away for several months, Jisung had missed its release so he revels in the chance to dance along to it as he cleans.  He’s not surprised when he hears Woojin’s lovely voice rising in time with Rosé’s in the chorus.  Felix comes back, hands still gloved and soapy, just to accompany Jennie’s spitfire rap, his enunciation impressively good.  Jisung cheers when he’s done and the blond throws him a beaming smile before literally skipping off to his work again.

At two minutes to eight, when everything is as perfect as can be, Woojin flaps a hand at them, telling them to get going so he can lock up.

‘See you next week, hyung!’ Felix says happily, Jisung’s hand clasped firmly in his as they make for the door.

‘Bye, Woojin-hyung, nice to see you again!’ Jisung chirps, waving with his free hand.

The elder boy sends them off with a twinkling smile, calling, ‘Be careful on your way home, you two!  Don’t catch a cold, Felix-ah!’

Felix’s house is a solid fifteen-minute run from the café.  He didn’t bring an umbrella, which he probably should have, and of course Jisung doesn’t have one.

‘I’ll race you,’ Felix challenges excitedly.  ‘Winner gets the shower first.’

Technically, Jisung doesn’t ever really need to shower, but he enjoys them as much as anyone else.  ‘You’re on,’ he says gamely.

Then they’re out the door and into the heavy, humid air, almost immediately drenched in the downpour that hasn’t let up since it started.  Despite this being a race, they don’t break their handhold, laughing and splashing and running and panting together until they get to the final stretch.  At the top of the Felix’s street, they release each other and sprint for all they’re worth, heedless of the slippery pavement and the little streams forming everywhere.

Felix just barely wins by two strides, leaping up onto the sheltered doorstep with a victorious whoop.  Jisung follows a moment later, huffing and, despite his loss, grinning.  He rolls his eyes at Felix’s little victory dance but laughs when the blond boy slings an arm around his shoulders and smacks an enthusiastic kiss on his cheek.

‘That was fun,’ Felix says, exhilaration clear in his voice.

‘Yeah, even if I nearly tripped at the last corner,’ Jisung admits, slightly chagrined.

Felix snorts, reaching out with his free hand to ring the doorbell.  ‘That would’ve been ironic – rain boy slips in the rain...’

‘I haven’t had legs for three months, give me a break,’ Jisung whines, directing his most devastating pout at his very wet boyfriend.

Before a response can be made, the front door opens, revealing Felix’s mother bearing two huge green towels.  ‘Hello, boys,’ she smiles, her eyes crinkling just like her son’s.  ‘You both look like you could do with one of these.’

‘Hi, Mrs Lee!’ Jisung exclaims, brightening up immediately.

‘Thanks, Mum,’ Felix grins, taking both towels and happily dropping one of them over Jisung’s head.

While his boyfriend squawks and shoves at him, his Mum says, ‘It’s nice to see you again, Jisung.  Maybe try to be a little earlier next time, hmm?  We were starting to think the rain would never come!’

‘I came as quickly as I could!’ Jisung protests, his wounded-puppy-look springing back up automatically.

Mrs Lee gives him a fond look before ruffling both of their hair.  ‘Dry yourselves as much as you can before you come in, please,’ she orders, stepping away.  ‘When you’ve gotten changed, there’ll be berry smoothies in the kitchen, Chris is making some.’

‘Thank you!’ they call in sync as she disappears further into the house.

The rain’s somehow getting heavier and there’s a wind picking up now so, in the interests of not letting the entranceway of Felix’s home get as drenched as they are, the boys quickly remove their shoes and scrub themselves with the towels until they’re only moderately damp.  Then, swift as they can, they’re skittering inside, down the hall, and upstairs to the kids’ bathroom.  Rapidly cooling now, Felix is quick to grab the bathmat and turn on the shower, before shooing Jisung out to fetch two pairs of pyjamas from his bedroom.

‘Be quick, or I’ll turn the light off when I get back,’ Jisung threatens, pulling the bathroom door shut to the sound of Felix’s indignation with some petty satisfaction.

Jisung hums a quiet, happy tune under his breath as he follows the familiar path to Felix’s room.  Inside, it’s pretty much just as it was when he last saw it, except maybe a bit tidier.  There’s an unfamiliar duvet cover in stripes of deep purple, blue, and white, and the chest of drawers has swapped places with the little desk, but nothing else seems to have changed.  He swipes the faded cotton shorts draped carelessly over the end of the bed, before going over to the drawers and pulling open the bottom one.  With quick, sure movements, he rifles through the clothes until he finds another pair of shorts and two loose t-shirts.  They probably won’t sleep with those on – the rain has, if anything, made everything feel warmer – but he doubts Chris would appreciate seeing them half naked.

As he slips back into the bathroom, the smell of Felix’s citrus shampoo pleasantly permeating the air, the boy in the shower calls out, ‘I’m nearly done, don’t you dare turn out the light.’

Jisung snorts, setting the pyjamas down on the washing machine before hoisting himself up next to them.  ‘Alright, Mr Nearly Done, keep your pants on.’

‘Sorry, already taken them off,’ comes the impressively dry response.

A small laugh is startled out of Jisung as he realises the joke he just accidentally made, glancing at Felix’s discarded clothes.

‘Coming out now, prepare yourself,’ Felix says a minute later, shutting off the water.

‘You’ve got nothing I haven’t seen before, Lix,’ Jisung replies, amused, dropping his gaze to his lap.  ‘I doubt the trauma would be _that_ bad.’

‘Please, you’d be blinded by my beauty,’ Felix scoffs, making rustling sounds as he steps out the shower and wraps a towel around himself.

Jisung smiles down at his hands, awaiting permission to look up again.  ‘That’s nothing special.  You blind me every time I lay eyes on you.’

Startled silence greets his words, and he only jerks his head up when he gets a smack on the shoulder.  ‘What was that for?’ he protests, leaning away defensively.

Felix is staring at him with wide eyes and very pink cheeks, the flush by no means entirely attributed to the shower.  ‘You can’t just – just _say_ stuff like that,’ he squeaks.  ‘That’s so unfair, now I’m blushing and you were just being _sappy_ –’

The smirk that crooks Jisung’s mouth is equal parts fond and amused.  He hops down from his perch and slowly closes the distance between them.  Felix just barely manages not to concede any ground.  When there’s but inches between Jisung’s clothed chest and Felix’s bare one, the fair skin sprinkled liberally with water droplets, he stops, his smirk bordering on a smug grin.

‘What’s with that look,’ Felix grumbles, his face still red.

The grin blossoms.  ‘Baby,’ Jisung says, knowingly, smile broadening when the blond lets out a little _eep_ sound.  ‘You know I was teasing you.  I’ll still always be the first in line to tell you you’re beautiful, though.’

Felix huffs despairingly, knocking his forehead against Jisung’s for the second time that day.  He maintains eye contact as he sighs, ‘You’re the worst, I swear.’

Jisung pouts.  ‘That’s mean.  I just told you you’re beautiful.  I think that makes me the _best_ boyfriend.’

With an exasperated sound, Felix tilts his head up to press a butterfly kiss to Jisung’s forehead before stepping back and pushing the other boy towards the shower.  ‘Go on, if we take too long up here someone will come looking for us.’

At the continued puppy eyes, he smiles.  ‘ _Yes_ , you’re the best boyfriend or whatever.  Now hurry up before Mum comes knocking on the door.’

Satisfied, Jisung turns to the shower, reaching inside to turn it on while Felix roots around in the cabinet under the sink to find the hair dryer.  Jisung swiftly disrobes and hops under the spray, sighing as his muscles immediately begin to relax in the welcome warmth.  He doesn’t stay in long, his body warming up much quicker than that of an ordinary human, and by the time he’s out and scrubbing himself dry with multiple towels, Felix is still drying his hair.  Jisung slips into the Winnie the Pooh shorts and dark blue sleeveless t-shirt he selected for himself, before hanging up the wet towels and bathmat strewn over the floor.  When Felix is done with the dryer, his hair fluffy and gleaming gold, he doesn’t offer it to Jisung – he knows the rain boy would refuse, preferring to let the strands of his much darker hair hang cool and wet around his face till they dry on their own.

As Felix combs his hair into some semblance of order, Jisung steps up behind him and drops a kiss on his now-clothed shoulder, arms locking around his waist.  ‘You about ready?’ he mumbles into the fabric.

‘Yep.’  Disentangling himself from Jisung’s hold, Felix chucks the comb into the cabinet and shuts it smartly.  He scoops up their wet clothes and dumps them in the washing basket, then takes Jisung’s hand and leads them out of the bathroom.  ‘Let’s go see if hyung’s finished the smoothies.’

They trot down the stairs and along the corridor to the kitchen.  Inside, Chris is rinsing out the smoothie machine in the sink, several near-full glasses arranged on the counter by the remnants of an assortment of fruit.

‘Chris-hyung!’ Jisung cheers, impatiently tugging Felix over to the bench.

The curly-haired boy flashes a big smile, dimples and all, at the younger two.  ‘Hi Jisung-ah!  We’ve been missing you around here.  Did you have a good time away?’

Jisung grins, bouncing on his toes, while Felix inspects the smoothies.  ‘Yeah, it was great, we went to lots of interesting places this time.  But, ah –’ he glances quickly at the blond boy next to him who is in the midst of a tentative lick of his purplish drink – ‘I’m really glad to be back.’

Chris’s smile is gentle, the look in his eyes knowing, as he nods in response.  ‘I’m sure I’ll get to hear all about it at some point.  For now, go ahead and take one of the glasses.  Felix hasn’t waited for anyone else, I see...’  He sighs loudly, grabbing his half-brother’s attention.

‘Mm?’ Felix squeaks, looking up at them from his drink, his eyes wide in attempted innocence.

Jisung giggles at the look on his face and Chris rolls his eyes.  As he sets the cleaned smoothie machine on the drying rack, Chris swipes his own glass and asks, ‘Well?  Do you like it?’

Felix nods enthusiastically, immediately singing its praises, while Jisung tries it.  He has to agree – it’s cool, refreshing, fruity, and not too sweet.

‘Delicious, hyung, thanks,’ he says earnestly.

Dimples reappear on Chris’s face.  ‘Mum got some boysenberries and blueberries today; they go pretty well, huh?’  Then he shoots a quick look at the clock above the fridge before hastily setting about tidying the bench and putting the fruit scraps in the compost bucket.

‘Right, catch you two later, I’ve got a Skype call to make with Minho, he’s singing for my final assignment and I need to talk to him about lyrics,’ he rambles, almost forgetting his drink as he speeds out of the kitchen with a parting wave.

The younger boys blink after him in mild surprise as his sudden departure, but are not overly shocked.  Such is the way of a busy Bang Chris.

‘Do you want anything to eat?’ Felix asks, taking a big slurp of his smoothie as he heaves open the fridge door.  ‘Ooh, there’s some _mul naengmyeon_ left, probably for us.’

Jisung isn’t overly fussed.  He mostly just wants to cuddle with his boyfriend but it’s a bit early for that and he hasn’t even said hello to Felix’s father yet.  So he says yes and Felix serves them both a portion of the cold noodle dish, which they eat at the kitchen island, finishing off their drinks at the same time.

While they eat, Felix asks Jisung how his time away was, where he and the other rain people went this time when they dissolved their physical forms three months ago and re-joined the rain-mind.  Jisung enthusiastically regales him with tales of lofty mountains in Japan, vast tracks of gleaming glaciers far to the north, and endless oceans everywhere in between.  He tells Felix about the other rain-minds they encountered, the stories that were shared.

‘There was this one really big snowstorm, I don’t know where we were then, but it had a snow-mind in it!  It was cool to meet them,’ Jisung recounts excitedly, waving his chopsticks around and almost stabbing Felix in the eye.  ‘We haven’t come across many of them before.’

‘Not Jeongin’s one, then?’ Felix asks, deftly plucking a tiny piece of noodle from the countertop where it crash-landed after being flung from Jisung’s chopsticks.

Jisung has just taken a bite of food, so he only shakes his head as he hastily chews and swallows.  Felix downs the last of his smoothie while he waits.

‘No,’ Jisung manages, still chewing.  ‘I’ve never met Jeongin’s snow-mind.  They stay pretty local, I think, always in this country’s mountains.  We’re usually out of Korea after a couple of days.’

Felix hums his thoughtful acknowledgement.  ‘I should ask him about it when he get back.’

They tidy away their dishes as soon as they’re finished, Felix nearly dropping his bowl when Jisung goes in for a surprise tickle attack.  Cackling with delight at Felix’s strangled yelp, the rain boy sprints out of the room to avoid retaliation but is swiftly cornered in the entranceway.  Jisung is more sensitive and under Felix’s merciless assault on his ribs it doesn’t take him long to plead forgiveness, red-faced and gasping.  Satisfied, Felix smirks at him and demands a kiss as recompense.  Jisung readily smothers his boyfriend’s face with soft butterfly kisses ‘til they’re both pink and giggly.  Then Felix scoops up his schoolbag, which he’d discarded just inside the door when they arrived, and they head back down the hall to the stairs.  The boys pause only briefly in the doorway of the living room, greeting Mr Lee and bidding both parents goodnight.

The thundering rain is a blissful sound after so long without it and Felix’s room is filled with the sweet, fresh scent it carries through the open window next to his bed.  Jisung immediately plops down on the duvet and leans against the wall, eyes riveted to the rain, hanging one hand out the window.  Felix smiles faintly at the sight before focusing on swiftly unpacking his schoolbag.  When he’s done, he turns back to the bed and sees Jisung watching him, a disgustingly soft expression on his face.

‘Ugh, don’t look at me like that,’ Felix groans, flushing slightly and collapsing forwards onto the bed, limp as a cooked noodle.

Jisung snickers.  ‘Why not?’ he demands playfully, combing his fingers through Felix’s hair.

‘I’ll melt,’ his boyfriend whines, words muffled by the duvet, ‘and the humidity is doing a good enough job for the both of you, thanks.’

Jisung laughs outright at that, joyful and loud.  He gently pushes Felix’s head, turning it so half of Felix’s face is exposed.

‘Do you want me to cool down now?’ he asks.  ‘I wasn’t going to until we went to sleep but I can if you want.’

Felix grunts, shutting his visible eye.  ‘I’ll be fine,’ he replies, ‘I’m just whining.’

The rain boy hums noncommittally, keeping his hand in Felix’s hair.  When he has a corporeal body, lowering his temperature is a bit more difficult, takes a bit more energy, but he’s just eaten so he’ll be fine.  Jisung is very happy he doesn’t have to worry about an internal couple of degrees’ difference like a human does.  He breathes out slowly, calming himself enough for his temperature to start dropping.

It takes Felix a minute to notice but when he does, he cracks open his eye again, his stare accusatory.

I’ve been dealing with the heat for months,’ he grumbles, ‘I’ll survive a bit more of it.  Don’t tire yourself out on my account.’

Jisung coos, curling down to rub his still-damp head against Felix’s bare skin, making the other boy squeal and roll away.

‘Aw, Lix,’ he singsongs.  ‘Are you worrying about me?  That’s so sweet!’

Felix growls, sitting up and holding Jisung at arm’s length.  ‘Well, _someone_ has to!’

Jisung’s eyes curve up into happy crescents and he beams his heart-shaped smile, making Felix’s stomach flip.  ‘What a good boyfriend you are,’ he says, delighted.

‘And don’t you forget it,’ Felix giggles, any pretence of a scowl slipping away.

Jisung surprises him then by suddenly leaning in close, smile delicately tender.  ‘I would never,’ he murmurs.

Unable to help himself, Felix’s breath hitches, eyes flicking down to the rain boy’s mouth and back up.  Like this, with just the two of them and the comforting sound of the downpour outside, he can’t help the rush of emotion he feels swelling in his chest.

It’s been so _long_.

Jisung’s smile twitches wider for a moment and he lifts a hand to gently cup the freckled boy’s jaw before closing the gap and pressing his lips to Felix’s.  Felix sighs, relaxing into the touch and gripping Jisung’s nape to keep him near.  For a little while, the soft sound of their mouths moving in tandem is the only thing to be heard over the rain, the kiss staying sweetly innocent.  They part for breath, but only slightly.  Happy sighs slip through their lips, lashes brush as their eyes open.  Warm contentment fills every fibre of Felix’s being and he cannot help but tilt his head fractionally up to touch his mouth to Jisung’s again, neither of them breaking the deeply intimate eye contact.  The kiss ends momentarily as they shuffle closer, entwining their bodies and curling gentle arms around each other.  It doesn’t take long for them both to melt, their kisses soft and slow.

Outside, little streams form, puddles deepen, the sky darkens – inside, two young men relearn one another once more through touch.

An indeterminate amount of time later, Felix mumbles, ‘We should cuddle and go to sleep.’

Jisung hums, making the blond’s lips tingle.  ‘Mmm, you have work tomorrow, right?’

A grunt of agreement rumbles out of Felix’s throat.  ‘Yep.  Not ‘til twelve though, we can still sleep in.’

‘Oh, good,’ the rain boy says, mouth quirking up into a beautiful smile.

With that, they get ready for bed.  Reluctantly disentangling himself from Jisung, Felix leaves to brush his teeth while the other boy draws the curtains shut, leaving the window cracked open behind them.  By the time Felix is back, Jisung’s shucked his top and is lying under the sheet, duvet folded back.

‘Budge over a bit,’ Felix tells him, slipping out of his own shirt off and carelessly dropping it on the floor.

‘But cuddles,’ Jisung pouts, curled up right in the middle of the bed.

The freckled boy huffs a brief laugh.  ‘Sungie, it’s a single bed.  There’s no way we’re not going to be cuddling.’

Jisung grudgingly wiggles a couple of inches closer to the wall and Felix just smiles fondly at him as he slides under the sheet too.  They share the pillow, limbs immediately tangling together, the rain boy’s cooler body the only reason this doesn’t get very hot and sticky very quickly.

Despite being the one to suggest they went to sleep, Felix can’t quite bring himself to close his eyes.  This last sun season has been a long one – it doesn’t usually take the rain more than ten weeks to come back and now that he has Jisung here with him again, he doesn’t want to miss a second of it.  Jisung, too, has not shut his eyes and the smile that unfurls across his face is a touch amused.

‘Can’t get enough of me, huh?’ he teases quietly.

Felix’s lower lip pushes out in the merest hint of a pout.  ‘Three months is a long time without you.’

Expression softening, Jisung says, ‘It was a long time for me too.  You know I came as soon as I could, right?’

‘Yeah, yes, I know, don’t worry,’ Felix answers, brushing soothing fingertips over the rain boy’s cheekbone.  He pauses a moment, then continues: ‘I’m so happy you’re back.’

Jisung lifts his hand to close it around the one Felix has by his face, turning just enough to press a butterfly kiss to his palm.  ‘You know I’ll always come back to you, Lix.’

Gently twisting the hold around so Felix is now holding Jisung’s hand, he tugs it down to lightly kiss the back of his boyfriend’s fingers before laying their entwined hands between them.

‘I know,’ he replies.  ‘I know.’  He blinks, slow and heavy.  ‘I’ll always be waiting for you.’

‘Good.’

Thick as molasses, quiet settles over the room, making their eyelids droop and their breaths slow.

Before sleep can claim him completely, Felix whispers, ‘Good night, Jisung.  Love you to the sun and back.’

‘Night, Felix,’ Jisung sighs, arm tightening slightly around Felix’s waist.  ‘Love you to the earth and back.’

Lulled by the endless rain outside and the comfort of their embrace, the two boys drift off to sleep.


End file.
